Ralph Lauren quietly shuttered its two-year-old 20,000-square-foot store last week. Other brands are expected to close boutiques in a city that has lost its luster for cash-rich mainland Chinese tourists.

She started Monday as Suzy Menkes' fashion assistant after working beside Daily Telegraph scribe Hilary Alexander for more than a decade.

IN COMMAND: Suzy Menkes, fashion editor at the International Herald Tribune, has a new recruit. Natasha Cowan started Monday as her fashion assistant, after working beside Daily Telegraph scribe Hilary Alexander for more than a decade. “She has my enthusiasm for fashion, and she also likes the digital world,” Menkes enthused at the Bouchra Jarrar couture show in Paris.

As Menkes’ new sidekick, Cowan takes over some of the duties previously handled by Jessica Michault, who in May left the IHT to become editor in chief of the Web site and magazine Nowfashion.com.

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@rebeccaminkoff is bringing self-checkout to high fashion: The brand has partnered with @queuehop to bring its customers self-checkout options, beginning this holiday season at its SoHo store. (📷: @aurorarosephoto)